7 biggest surprises from Canucks preseason so far
They say sports are unpredictable. That’s certainly been true for the Vancouver Canucks this preseason.
We have a pretty good idea of what the Canucks roster is going to look like on opening night, after the team cut 21 players following Saturday’s preseason win against the Edmonton Oilers.
Although the preseason hasn’t quite concluded, we’re going to rank the seven biggest surprises we’ve seen from the Canucks since the season kicked off.
1. McWard emerges as Hughes’ partner
Okay, nobody saw this coming.
Cole McWard played five NHL games last season after being signed as a college free agent back in April. Most assumed he’d need at least one full year with the Abbotsford Canucks before making the jump to the NHL full-time.
So much for that.
Hughes has had multiple partners since training camp began, but it’s McWard who has stuck by his side for most of the preseason.
Coach Rick Tocchet’s affinity for the lefty, righty pairings, coupled with poor preseason performances by Noah Juulsen and Jett Woo, have allowed McWard to go from roster long-shot to perhaps starting the season alongside Hughes.
Highest 5v5 xGF% from a defensive pair so far this preseason:
84.68% ā McNabb & Theodore
72.12% ā Hughes & McWard
58.16% ā Orlov & DeAngelo
56.17% ā Chabot & Chychrun
55.55% ā Lindell & Lundkvist pic.twitter.com/JO4YHHdznR— Big Head Hockey (@BigHeadHcky) October 2, 2023
2. Canucks cut Podkolzin
Not only that, but you could argue Vasily Podkolzin didn’t come all that close to making the team either.
The 10th overall pick from 2019 began training camp with a golden opportunity alongside J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser. Really, both Podkolzin and Hƶglander were given amazing opportunities to crack the Canucks roster while playing in a top-six role.
While Hƶglander has done well with his opportunity, Podkolzin wasted his with uneven play throughout training camp and the preseason. He was officially sent down to the AHL during the Canucks roster cuts on Sunday.
3. Studnicka, Aman force way onto Canucks’ roster
After an underwhelming start to his Canucks career last season, Jack Studnicka seemed like a long-shot to make the team.
However, the former Boston Bruin drew rave reviews during training camp, and has been noticeable throughout preseason action.
The same goes for Nils Aman. It looked like Aman was in tough to make this team after the Canucks signed bottom-six centres Pius Suter and Teddy Blueger during the offseason. However, Tocchet said that Aman was one of the three best guys in terms of fitness coming into training camp, and he seems to have carved out a spot on the wing alongside Blueger and Studnicka.
āThatās a huge line for us if that line can develop,ā Tocchet told reporters after practice last week. āThereās a ways to go, but if that line can develop, itās just a lot easier for me to have that kind of line.ā
4. Joshua on outside looking in
While Aman was praised for his fitness, his linemate from last season, Dakota Joshua, was singled out as someone who wasn’t in great shape.
Tocchet on Dakota Joshua āDakota, heās gotta pick it up. Iām not gonna get into some other factors but heās gotta try to win a job. The jobās not there, thereās guys breathing down that want jobsā #Canucks
— Harman Dayal (@harmandayal2) September 26, 2023
Joshua did seem to take the public criticism to heart, putting on an engaged and physical performance during the next two games he played.
Ohhh yeah… Dakota Joshua heard Rick Tocchet loud and clear.
š¹: KONG pic.twitter.com/HuYnPn9y9n
— ššµšæš¶š Faber š„š (@ChrisFaber39) September 29, 2023
Still, it was telling that during the Canucks preseason contest on Saturday against Edmonton, where they basically dressed their opening night lineup, Joshua was in the press box while the Canucks rolled with Aman, Blueger, and Studnicka on their fourth line.
5. Rathbone nowhere to be seen
It seems like yesterday that Jack Rathbone was one of the Canucks most promising young prospects.
That feels like a lifetime ago because the 24-year-old was basically non-existent for the Canucks throughout preseason action.
Despite playing nine preseason games for the Canucks during the last two seasons combined, Rathbone only played in one this year before being put on waivers. That was during a 10-0 drubbing at the hands of the Calgary Flames, where Rathbone was on the ice for four goals against.
6. Hirose fades
Many expected Akito Hirose to be in McWard’s shoes as a darkhorse to make the Canucks out of camp.
However, just like Rathbone, Hirose only played in one preseason game for the Canucks. That decision was somewhat surprising since the 24-year-old was arguably the Canucks best player during the Young Stars tournament in Penticton.
Tocchet elaborated on the decision to send Hirose to the AHL, citing that his fitness wasn’t where the Canucks hoped it would be.
Tocchet had high praise for Hiroseās hockey IQ, but said his fitness levels werenāt where #Canucks wanted them to be at this stage
— Jeff Paterson (@patersonjeff) October 1, 2023
7. PDG ends up back in Canucks’ top six
Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised by another strong preseason performance from Phil Di Giuseppe.
The 29-year-old surprisingly ended last season playing in the top six with Miller and Boeser. He began training camp playing in the bottom six, but ended right back with Miller and Boeser as the preseason progressed.
On Saturday against the Oilers, Di Giuseppe was one of the Canucks’ best skaters.
Once again, it looks like Di Giuseppe, who’s making a league minimum of $775,000, could play on the Canucks second line to start the season.
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